Separate Peace - Student Packet by Novel Units, Inc. [Paperback]

Novel Units (Author), Inc. (Author)

Book Description

The packets feature multiple-level reproducibles for direct student use, including activity sheets, quizzes, and a final exam.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

John Knowles, who died in 2001, was a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy and Yale University, as well as a recipient of the William Faulkner Award and the Rosenthal Award of the National Institute of Arts and Letters.

Product Details

• Paperback: 44 pages
• Publisher: Novel Units, Inc. (January 24, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561374008
• ISBN-13: 978-1561374007
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 8.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,191,108 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A boy at war with himself, April 28, 2010

By 

Robin Brodsky (Boston) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Separate Peace - Student Packet by Novel Units, Inc. (Paperback)

When I came across this book, it brought up titles from the back of my mind like "Lord of the Flies" and "Animal Farm", books I was required to read in school but would probably appreciate much more now than I did then. Books that are called a "masterpiece" and a "classic". I usually read lighter fare, but decided to challenge myself a little more with "A Separate Peace" & I'm glad I did. The sentences that describe the New England boarding school where the story takes place are so rich and descriptive with scenery that I often had to go back and read a sentence over again to get the picture. Usually this will detract me from finishing a book, but not this one.
It was well worth the time.

"A Separate Peace" is told from the perspective of one of its students, Gene Forrester. Throughout the book, Gene struggles with two demons - his feelings toward the time he lives in, the early 1940's with a raging World War II on - and his love/hate feelings toward his best friend, Phineas. Sometimes Gene faces the demons head-on, and sometimes he lives in unapologetic denial until reality slaps him in the face, as when one of his classmates goes AWOL from the military & unleashes his full mental breakdown on him. In the end, Gene doesn't have to wait until his time on the battlefield to face the evil inside of him. By the time he puts on a uniform, he has already gone to war with himself and lost.

3.0 out of 5 stars Wasn't one of my favorite books, April 24, 2010

By 

Jason Weber - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Separate Peace - Student Packet by Novel Units, Inc. (Paperback)

This book by all means wasn't bad, it just wasn't anything great. Gene and Finny had a strange relationship, and it was by far interesting to see how it progressed. I know they weren't gay, but some people speculated it is a story about two lovers who are trying to cope with their feelings for each other. The characters are pretty deep and well developed, and is interesting to see the two opposite poles Gene and Finny mingle. It is kind of a sad but hopeful ending, which concludes the book pretty well. I think Lemur was also a pretty good character, he represented the impact the war was having on our nation, and how war can change a person. I'm not sure if there is something I am not seeing, but the story didn't really move me too much intellectually, and didn't seem to have much deepness behind it. It is good in the sense of what it is trying to tell, the story of two high school friends trying to impress each other, but that is all I really got out of it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Book - I reread it every several years!, March 13, 2009

By 

MommyCoco "M Coco" (Greer, SC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Separate Peace - Student Packet by Novel Units, Inc. (Paperback)

A Separate Peace and To Kill A Mockingbird are my two favorite books of all time. I reread both of them every several years because I like them so much. Each time I read them I tend to pick up new details I missed the first few times I read them.
I must confess that these were two of the few books I read during high school. I am embarrassed to admit that I relied on CliffNotes to get me through much of our assigned reading back then. The funny thing is that the two books that I actually made the effort to read turned out to be my two favorite books of all time. Even to this day, almost 20 years out of high school, and nowadays I read on average a book a week and I have read lots of wonderful books over the last several years, A Separate Peace and To Kill A Mockingbird still stand strong.
I truly cannot understand anyone bashing either of these two books. I think it reflects sadly on our society and our society's values. I think it reflects poorly on parents who have failed to cultivate a love of reading in their children which then spills over in to the schools where the teachers often are blamed for poor academic performance. Let's not forget academic performance begins in the HOME. The parents are their children's primary teachers.
So for those who called A Separate Peace "boring," "awful," "had no action," "wasn't believable," etc., how about trying to reread it a few years down the road when you are more mature and can appreciate excellence? And to the person who stated in his one-star critique of A Separate Peace "what kind of sixteen year-old knocks their best friend out of a tree because he's jealous???" - are you kidding me? Knocking him out of a tree was mild compared to the horrendous violence I have seen in the news over the last several years - even just in the last week or two!-of what people do to their friends, girlfriends, boyfriends, parents, siblings or complete strangers just because of jealousy or they have been angered over something big or small. In the news last week a 10 year old shot his 8-year-old brother in the face with a shot gun because he said his brother took his seat when they were watching a DVD. Huh?! So you kill him?
I have been rambling on, so I will wrap it up now. As a parent to a 4-year-old boy and a six-year-old girl, I will say that if there is only one thing I have done right as a parent thus far, it has been instilling in my children an extreme love of reading and appreciating books. My rule has been that whenever my child asks me to read, I drop what I am doing and I read to him and/or her. The two of them showed love for books before their first birthdays. My daughter is now a phenomenal reader and is reading far beyond her grade level. She loves reading to her little brother and seeing them do this is providing me with some beautiful memories of their childhood. I still have my copies of A Separate Peace and To Kill A Mockingbird and have shown them to my kids and one day will pass them along to them. I hope they enjoy these books as much as I have - I have a feeling they will!